A not so long time ago, in valleys not so far away, an incredibly invigorating announcement was made at Wales' National Eisteddfod in Llantwd, Pembr
A not so long time ago, in valleys not so far away, an incredibly invigorating announcement was made at Wales’ National Eisteddfod in Llantwd, Pembrokeshire. As George Lucas’ epic space opera Star Wars prepares to celebrate its 50th anniversary, Lucasfilm and Disney have joined forces with S4C and the Welsh Government to produce the first ever Welsh-language dub of A New Hope — aka Star Wars: Gobaith Newydd. And they’ve assembled some of Wales’ finest acting talent to give the adventures of Luke Skywalker and his pals some Walian punch.
Gobaith Newydd‘s cast includes Widow’s Bay star Matthew Rhys as Han Solo, Rhys Ifans as Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Slow Horses‘ Aimee-Ffion Edwards as Princess Leia. The Last Jedi‘s Mark Lewis Jones will be taking on the role of Darth Vader, while newcomer Osian Morgan voices Luke Skywalker. Elsewhere, the wider Welsh ensemble includes the likes of Llyr Ifans (C-3PO), Nia Roberts (Aunt Beru), Richard Harrington (Grand Moff Tarkin), The Rings Of Power star Owain Arthur (Red Leader), and Rhodri Meilir (Gold Leader). And we even have the opening crawl in Welsh to whet our appetites! Check it out below;
In a statement accompanying Star Wars: Gobaith Newydd‘s announcement, Welsh-born and raised Lucasfilm Co-President Lynwen Brennan shared her excitement at including her homeland in Star Wars’ massive 50th celebrations. “Wales has such a rich history of storytelling and a beautiful lyrical language,” said Brennan. “We have never before had a translation of Star Wars into Welsh and I am so thankful, that in celebration of our 50th anniversary, we have been able to work with some incredible Welsh talent to make that a reality. Welsh speakers will finally be able to enjoy the film in our native language and my hope is that it will have the same emotional impact as if you were watching the film again for the first time.”
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Due to premiere on S4C and its associated platforms from Christmas Day this year, Star Wars: Gobaith Newydd continues what has, by all accounts, been a brilliant year for Wales on screen — with the likes of Madfabulous, Effi O Blaenau, and upcoming Aimee-Ffion Edwards led Western Lluest having ignited something of a Welsh New Wave. So all that’s left to say for now really is mae gennym ni teimlad da am hyn — we’ve got a good feeling about this.
